Seastrait Conflict
The Seastrait Conflict was a low-level cold war that began as a trade dispute between the Principality of Tarquin and the Free Marches of Gorreon. This eventually escalated into a much more serious affair, with naval battles being fought between Gorreon and Tarquin as well as land battles not only between Tarquin and Speerwald, but between Harkland and Alford. The primary effect of the war was the parachuting of the illustrious adventuring guild known as the Pathfinder Society into the cockpit of world affairs, leading to a brief period (1578-1590) where much of international commerce and politics was controlled by the hidden hand of the Decemvirate. __TOC__ Introduction: Rise of Tarquin The Principality of Tarquin was established by the Elves after the fall of the Grunwald Civilization. It drove back the undead hordes to the north and - in time - expanded southward, eventually encompassing a series of Human and Centaur tribes, becoming a large, heterogeneous realm which encompassed forests in the north, planes in the center, and dessert far to the south. The arrival of the Ashen Crusaders to the north in 1414 caused tension. Initially, it was feared that the Grunwalder's actions in colonizing and purging and area still heavy with undead would provoke a renewed attack. This anxiety gave way to startled fear at the lightning fast rise of the new nation of Speerwald. The initial fear seemed to be confirmed toward the end of 1400s when the Tarquin Assembly began receiving increasing reports of undead activity south of the mountains. It seemed as if the undead had expanded southward and were now causing the journey through the "Southern Corridor" (Tarquin's main trade artery to the far west) much more hazardous. The Principality experienced a significant drop in revenue and now - in it's weakened state - had to face a choice between annihilation by the undead or vassalization by the Order of Speerwald, which would mean abandonment of their many varied religions, including the Elves' ancient Druidic faith, in favor of the Grunwalder's new Ashen Sun religion. The debate wrent Tarquin society in twain for several decades until an unexpected opportunity fell into their lap. In 1501, representatives from an adventuring guild known as the Pathfinders presented a surprising discovery to Prince Ailmer. The Pathfinders had been given permission to search Tarquin for ancient artifacts from the Grunwald civilization, but instead found a series of Elven scrolls that predated the Grunwalder's. These treatises explained the ancient Elven method of woodmaking as practiced by the Bronze Age Elven civilization. Before now, the Elves had avoided harvesting lumber, believing that it was harmful to destroy the trees in such a way. Now, however, they could produce wood rather cheaply without having to cut down trees. The treatises were bought from the Pathfinders at a VERY hefty price, and the government ordered wood production to begin posthaste. Speaking before the assembly, Prince Ailmer made the case for using the wood to produce a vast fleet: "We are all in agreement that something must be done to revitalize the realm if we intend to face the dual threat of the Grunwalders and the Undead. With the land routes to the Jade Kingdom blocked, we must make a new way across the sea." The first ship left it's dock on the 18th of January 1504. In time, becoming a trade empire seemed to be working. Royal coffers were refilled and the Army once again became a force to be reckoned with. However, this booming trade brought Tarquin into direct competition with another trading power. The Merchants of Gorreon Pryor to Tarquin's emergence onto the scene of world trade, the greatest traders of the Seastrait region were the various city states, loosely bound together under the title of the "Free Marches of Gorreon" named after the great landmass which they inhabited. Controlling the strait between Gorreon and Ilùv, they monopolized trade to the south and east, but had also broken into western markets. The truth was - however - that by the time the first Tarquin ship disembarked the Gorreon trade had become a farce reinforced with straw. The one resource that Gorreon held in great quantities was gold, this they would take to the far west "Jade Kingdom" and trade for coffee, spices, textiles and gems, which would be brought back and sold for exorbitant prices to the other Seastrait nations. The notorious stinginess of the Gorreon merchants didn't win them any popularity contests, but in truth, the high prices barely turned a profit. Gorreon had - it was true - more gold than any other nation, but it wasn't enough to easily pay for wood, construction of ships, provisions for the voyage, pay for the merchants AND the trade goods. If not for the incredibly high prices - which were just high enough to keep demand up - the whole Gorreon trade enterprise would have been hemorrhaging money. Had they looked at the numbers, the Gorreons must have known that trade would eventually become a money-loser. But tradition and national pride got in the way. Their ancestors had poured their blood and sweat into constructing their trading empire and they couldn't just dismantle it now. Outbreak of Hostilities